Amgen shares climb after Roche anemia appeal move

By Bill Berkrot

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Amgen Inc's (AMGN.O: Quote, Profile, Research) beaten down shares jumped more than 7 percent on Thursday on optimism that it could be a year or more before its top-selling anemia drugs face competition from a rival medicine from Roche Holding AG (ROG.VX: Quote, Profile, Research).

Roche on Wednesday appealed an injunction blocking it from selling its Mircera in the United States. But the move that sends the patent dispute to a higher court will ultimately further delay Roche's entry into the lucrative marketplace, analysts said.

"We expect the appeal process to take time, removing a near term overhang from Amgen's stock," Credit Suisse analyst Michael Aberman said in a research note.

Amgen won a court decision that found Roche's Mircera infringed patents Amgen holds on its anemia drugs, Epogen and Aranesp, and the world's largest biotechnology company has been seeking to have a preliminary injunction made permanent.

But the judge presiding over the case was considering requiring Amgen to license the patents on its top-selling drugs to Roche -- a setup that would allow the sale of Mircera in the United States with licensing payments going to Amgen.

Roche's move to appeal to a higher court at least temporarily takes the decision out of the hands of U.S. District Court Judge William Young and extends the timeline of any final decision.

"We believe that the loss of jurisdiction by the district court and the move to the appellate court should be viewed as a positive for Amgen," said Lehman Brothers analyst Jim Birchenough, adding that the specter of a compulsory licensing deal with Roche had been a significant concern.

"We believe that timelines for appeal will extend for at least 12 months, and the Federal Circuit court will be less accepting of Roche arguments of public interest over patent rights," Birchenough said in a note.